If you manage to swallow the basic premise then the rest of the science isn't too incoherent: also, it's beautifully written, shot and acted (especially by the late great Leo Mckern.)
I can understand why the studios aren't going for this Maxivision48 system. After all, if the studios were really interested in improving film quality, surely they'd have standardised on 70mm by now? The difference in clarity between, say, the 70mm print of 2001 and a 35mm print is very noticable.
No, it seems to me that the principal (possibly the only?) advantage of digital is the ease of distribution, and that's why the large studios are pushing for it. Maxivision48 means you've got twice as much film stock to distribute, so I don't see it succeeding.
I wonder if we'll soon be seeing lots of angry press-releases from Redmond, claiming that (insert your favourite open-source project here) has 'obviously' used code 'stolen' from Microsoft? Makes you wonder if this 'hack' actually happened at all....
(Note: I don't believe this for a second, but even so, it's a nice conspiracy theory. Give me a couple of days and I'll work the Illuminati and the Knights Templar in as well...)
Why? Well, the '20%' of your time that you estimate would be devoted to management-type stuff is very subject to change, especially if the project is running late. For some reason, many managers think that the best way to handle a project that's behind schedule is to haul the team-leader into loads of meetings rather than leaving him/her to do his/her job.
This is further incontrovertable evidence that man is destroying his environment!!!! Unless we stop recklessly burning irreplacable fossil fuels then this "hole in the sun" can only get bigger!!!!
This novel sounds to me to be a little too much of a re-write of the life and times of Joan Of Arc, whimsically mixed in with a little fantasy.
But it isn't. Trust me. It would be difficult to explain why without introducing spoilers, but Ash is no Joan of Arc. Except in the sense of - darn. Even that would be giving too much away....
Furthermore, I'd categorise it as SF rather than fantasy. Swords and horses (and even a little Hermetic science) do not necessarily add up to 'fantasy'.
If you're unfamiliar with Mary Gentle's work...
on
Ash: A Secret History
·
· Score: 2
...check out the latest issue of the excellent Infinity Plus (which should be on any SF-loving/.er's favourites list anyway.) There is an interview with Mary and a short story of hers, also with Burgundian overtones but not directly related to ASH.
(As an aside, I concur with this article. ASH is an excellent book and well worth the effort if you have the attention span and upper body strength to handle it.)
It's difficult to tell from that story, but it sounds to me like they're using some kind of enhancer like the much-beloved Aphex 'Aural Exciter'. That supposedly adds harmonics to a signal, and can be very efffective if used correctly. Nothing particularly new, though.
Back doors into ISPs to aid surveillance and special government departments specifically to monitor internet access. Where have I heard that before recently? Now I know why our Glorious President and First Citizen Blair was so anxious to stay on the Chinese premier's good side when he visited London recently. He was hoping to pick up a few tips....
No mention of 'Baby' either, the world's first stored-program computer, a working replica of which was completed at the end of '98 on its 50th anniversary. Check here for more details.
Slashdot Mirror
This reminds me of this film.
If you manage to swallow the basic premise then the rest of the science isn't too incoherent: also, it's beautifully written, shot and acted (especially by the late great Leo Mckern.)
Well worth a view.
I can understand why the studios aren't going for this Maxivision48 system. After all, if the studios were really interested in improving film quality, surely they'd have standardised on 70mm by now? The difference in clarity between, say, the 70mm print of 2001 and a 35mm print is very noticable.
No, it seems to me that the principal (possibly the only?) advantage of digital is the ease of distribution, and that's why the large studios are pushing for it. Maxivision48 means you've got twice as much film stock to distribute, so I don't see it succeeding.
I wonder if we'll soon be seeing lots of angry press-releases from Redmond, claiming that (insert your favourite open-source project here) has 'obviously' used code 'stolen' from Microsoft? Makes you wonder if this 'hack' actually happened at all....
(Note: I don't believe this for a second, but even so, it's a nice conspiracy theory. Give me a couple of days and I'll work the Illuminati and the Knights Templar in as well...)
Never ever put yourself on the critical path.
Why? Well, the '20%' of your time that you estimate would be devoted to management-type stuff is very subject to change, especially if the project is running late. For some reason, many managers think that the best way to handle a project that's behind schedule is to haul the team-leader into loads of meetings rather than leaving him/her to do his/her job.
This is further incontrovertable evidence that man is destroying his environment!!!! Unless we stop recklessly burning irreplacable fossil fuels then this "hole in the sun" can only get bigger!!!!
But it isn't. Trust me. It would be difficult to explain why without introducing spoilers, but Ash is no Joan of Arc. Except in the sense of - darn. Even that would be giving too much away....
Furthermore, I'd categorise it as SF rather than fantasy. Swords and horses (and even a little Hermetic science) do not necessarily add up to 'fantasy'.
...check out the latest issue of the excellent Infinity Plus (which should be on any SF-loving /.er's favourites list anyway.) There is an interview with Mary and a short story of hers, also with Burgundian overtones but not directly related to ASH.
(As an aside, I concur with this article. ASH is an excellent book and well worth the effort if you have the attention span and upper body strength to handle it.)
It's difficult to tell from that story, but it sounds to me like they're using some kind of enhancer like the much-beloved Aphex 'Aural Exciter'. That supposedly adds harmonics to a signal, and can be very efffective if used correctly. Nothing particularly new, though.
Back doors into ISPs to aid surveillance and special government departments specifically to monitor internet access. Where have I heard that before recently? Now I know why our Glorious President and First Citizen Blair was so anxious to stay on the Chinese premier's good side when he visited London recently. He was hoping to pick up a few tips....
No mention of 'Baby' either, the world's first stored-program computer, a working replica of which was completed at the end of '98 on its 50th anniversary. Check here for more details.